Umbuliso

The Greeting

Newsletter of the Diocese of Grahamstown Oct-Nov 2015. Vol 38 No. 5

Inside this issue:

Berlin Parish “67 Minutes” 7

Bishop’s letter 2, 4

Cathedral students feed hungry 2

Family Weekend 5

Ginsberg Church Choir Retreat 6

Obituary: Vuyiswa Mize 7

Order of St Barnabas news 3

St Francis Youth news 4

St Saviours honours Cynthia

Webbstock 6

By Sinethemba Gayiza

The Diocesan Youth Guild cele-

brated June 16 in style at Mans-

field Game Reserve and St

Barnabas parish in Port Alfred on

the weekend of 12 to 14 June 2015.

Coming from a very successful

and informative Leadership Work-

shop which was held at St Andrew’s

in Mdantsane, the DYG kick-

started their Annual June 16 Cele-

brations with a Eucharist Service

celebrated by Bishop Ebenezer

Ntlali.

Bishop Ntlali also addressed the

young people who came in their

numbers to partake in the sport

and choir competitions. Bishop

Ntlali called on young people to

unite and work together in growing

the church, and for young people to

work hard in making something of

their lives so that they can escape

poverty. Bishop Ntlali put a strong

emphasis on the importance of edu-

cation.

A lively sport and choral contest

saw St Barnabas Guild of St Agnes

win the netball challenge. East

London East Archdeaconry won the

Soccer challenge whilst King Wil-

liam’s Town West won the coveted

Choir Competition.

The DYG Chairperson, Ms No-

bulali Mbilini, expressed strong

words of gratitude “to the guilds

that supported us, especially the

clergy and parents of Port Alfred as

without your continuous support,

we are nothing.”

A joint five-year plan by the

DYG and Guild of St Agnes (GOSA)

was due to be launched during the

Diocesan Family Weekend.

The DYG now looks set and

ready to hold their Bi-Annual Elec-

tive Conference which will be

hosted by Grahamstown Archdea-

conry from 2-4 October 2015.

Diocesan Youth Guild Celebrates Youth Day

Making new friends: Members of the Youth Guild from around the Diocese enjoy

themselves at Mansfield Game Reserve with Gambit the friendly giraffe.

By Cathy Meiklejohn

Andrew Summers, Founder and

President of the Calabar Founda-

tion, was pleased on his recent visit

to Grahamstown, to see that the

Good Shepherd Primary School

computer laboratory is abuzz with

activity.

(Continued on page 3)

Having a go at one of the computers in

the Good Shepherd School lab, Andrew

Summers when he visited in August.

Computer Lab sponsored

at Grahamstown school

Umbuliso Oct-Nov 2015, page 2

Bishop Ebenezer writes….

Holiness is not optional

(IsiXhosa: tyhila kwiphepha lesi-4)

Dear brothers and sisters,

May Jesus Christ who “is all and is

in all” (Col 3:11) reign within you. I

am always thankful to God, who

through the power of the Holy

Spirit enables you to function as the

Body of Christ.

Let us remind ourselves that the

different parts of our bodies func-

tion for the wellbeing of the whole

body: the brain helps you to think,

the lungs to breathe, the bones and

muscles to move, the thick bones of

your skull protect the brain and the

ribs protect your heart and lungs.

No part of our bodies can function

in isolation from the other parts;

and so it is with all of us who con-

fess God as Father. The prayer that

Jesus Christ taught his followers,

“Our Father…” (Matthew 6:9-13;

Luke 11:2-4), demands and instils

unity among us.

At baptism, we surrender our in-

dividual, tribal and societal value

systems to Christ. St Paul insisted

that the only way we can keep

Christ’s values is through the con-

stant renewal of the mind (Romans

12:2). He also urged the Church of

Colossae to set their minds on

things above (Col 3:2).

The Church pursues the renewal

of the mind, encouraging unity with

God and one another through Bible

study and prayer groups. And I ap-

peal to all families to have family

prayers every day (preferably in the

evenings when there is no rush) and

to attend weekly and if possible

daily Eucharists.

These activities are intended to

keep us united with God who is holy

and who invites us to be holy. When

God told Moses and Aaron to tell

the Israelites to be holy, he was not

just requesting them: “For I, the

Lord, am your God. You shall make

and keep yourselves holy, because I

am holy” (Leviticus 11:44, The Afri-

can Bible). Therefore, the holiness

of Christ’s followers is not optional,

it is mandatory. It is God’s value

system which helps us to relate har-

moniously to one another. St Peter

called upon the readers of his first

letter to be holy; “Like obedient chil-

dren ... as he who called you is holy,

be holy yourselves in every aspect of

your conduct, for it is written, ‘Be

holy because I (am) holy’.” (I Peter

1:14-16, The African Bible).

The desires of our ignorance cre-

ate fighting and wars within us and

within our communities. For our

human relationships to improve we

have to seek to be holy.

The Church offers opportunities

for the baptized to be holy. Through

the prayer of penitence, the bap-

tized seek newness of life (AAPB p.

106 #13). Take heed of God’s words

at Jesus’ transfiguration; “This is

my Son, whom I have chosen; listen

to him” (Luke 9:35, NIV).

Do we really listen to the sum-

mary of the Ten Commandments

every Sunday? Jesus said, “You

shall love the Lord your God with

all your heart, your soul and with

your mind…You shall love your

neighbour as yourself...” (APB, p.

105 #10). The intention of those

words is to improve our relation-

ships with God and one another.

The origin of misunderstandings is

our ignorance of Christ’s new com-

mandment : “Love one an-

other…” (John 13:34).

Our love for God and one another

sets us aflame with the fires that

ignited the Carmelite nun, mystic

and reformer, Teresa of Avila (1515-

1582). We start seeing ourselves as

God’s eyes, hand, ears and feet. We

embrace God’s image in us and

those we serve.

As the diocesan family may you

be permeated with God’s holiness,

your relationships with one another

be anchored in Christ’s love and

your services to the community be

transformed by the Holy Spirit; now

and forever. Amen.

By Titi Morobi

The Cathedral Student Ministry

(CSM) core team of 2015 started a

community outreach project called

Feeding Friday. The basis of the

project is to get the CSM students

involved in a sustainable long-term

outreach project, making sand-

wiches which are distributed to the

people on the streets in need of

something to eat.

Besides giving sandwiches, they

often chat to the people, and make

time to get to know them and hear

their stories. Some of them are

young children who have had to

drop out of school and become

breadwinners, and the only source

of income they get is from begging

for money. The students are always

moved by the stories, which make

them appreciate God’s blessings in

their lives and want to do more to

help.

The CSM members meet once a

month on a Friday, usually at 2 pm

to start making the sandwiches. By

3 pm they walk around town and

give the sandwiches to those in

need.

For the project to be a sustain-

able, the students buy affordable

sandwich

bags, a loaf

of polony,

t h r e e

loaves of bread, and butter. They

have ongoing support from Marie

Tarr who donates a loaf of polony

and bread to the cause. She has

been a blessing to the people who

benefit greatly from this project.

The CSM would like to thank

everyone who has helped in getting

the project up and running, and

hope that the next team to take over

in 2016 will do an even better job in

touching as many lives as possible.

Cathedral students help the hungry on “Feeding Fridays”

Umbuliso Oct-Nov 2015, page 3

P O Box 6013

Grahamstown 6141

Tel. 046 622 8111

Fax 046 622 6424

E-mail:

guesthouse@umaria.co.za;

www.umaria.co.za

The Guesthouse at Mariya uMama weThemba

Monastery

As part of the Benedictine ministry of hospitality,

the monks of Mariya uMama weThemba Monas-

tery offer a 25 bed, fully equipped guesthouse for

those seeking a quiet place of prayer and retreat

and for meetings. The Guesthouse is open from

Tuesday morning until Sunday afternoon.

Sponsored computer lab at Grahamstown school benefits learners, community

Sifunda Kunye, the South Afri-

can entity funded by the Calabar

Foundation, paid for the new com-

puter hardware, and also sponsors

the salary of the Computer Lab Fa-

cilitator at Good Shepherd School,

Gustaf Douws. Having Douws run-

ning timetabled classes for all Good

Shepherd learners has meant that

each learner spends at least three

periods a week in the computer lab

doing CAMI Maths, CAMI Percep-

tual, English extension and other

educational and IT-related activi-

ties. Gustaf Douws runs Computer

Clubs in the afternoons for Good

Shepherd learners, and on Satur- days the lab is used for community

members to do basic computer les-

sons. Over school holidays, town-

ship school learners from around

Grahamstown participate in a Holi-

day Club run by Sifunda Kunye in

the Good Shepherd School computer

lab, in collaboration with St An-

drew’s College.

A CAMI representative from

Cape Town who visited the lab re-

cently was impressed with the in-

tensity of use of CAMI educational

products in the School. Andrew

Summers expressed his pleasure

that the lab was being used opti-

mally, and hoped that this exposure

would lead to improved educational

outcomes at the school.

Tim Barnard, the former St An-

drew’s Community Engagement

Officer, played a significant role in

enabling this investment from the

Calabar Foundation for the Good

Shepherd School Computer Lab. He

was also instrumental in the much

larger investment of the Calabar

Foundation in Computer Labs in a

number of High Schools in the East-

ern Cape, and at the St Matthew’s

Mission School. [See June-July 2014

issue of Umbuliso - Ed.]

The Calabar Foundation would

like to increase its footprint in Gra-

hamstown. While Andrew Summers

was in Grahamstown, Prof Geoff

Antrobus, Chairman of the Good

Shepherd Trust, conveyed to him

the Trust’s gratitude for the Cala-

bar investment.

(Continued from page 1)

Andrew Summers (left) with Gustaf

Douws, the lab facilitator whose salary is

being paid by the Calabar Foundation .

In constant use:

Children from the

Good Shepherd

School use the

computers in their

lab for Maths,

English and other

subjects. On

Saturdays

community

members can learn

basic computer

skills, and learners

from other schools

use the lab in the

holidays.

By Zisiwe Ntontela, Media Officer Order

of St Barnabas, King William’s Town

East

On 1 August 2015 the Induction took

place of the Executive Committee of

King William’s Town East Lay Minis-

ters (Order of St Barnabas—OSB) at

Holy Trinity in King William’s Town.

The Eucharist Service started at

09h00 conducted by the Chaplain, Fa-

ther Bada.

The Induction was conducted by the

Archdeacon to the Ordinary, BTM

Mfenyana.

The following were inducted:

Chairperson: Lunga Malotana from

St John & St Chad Zwelitsha.

Secretary: Herbert Walton from Holy

Trinity

Treasurer: Kenneth Putini from St

Paul’s

Organiser: Thozama Jacobs from Holy

Trinity

Media Officer: Zisiwe Ntontela from

St John & St Chad

Mrs Gitywa was also inducted on that

day as music coordinator for the Order

of St Barnabas at a diocesan level.

OSB Executive members inducted for KWT East

• Good Shepherd School was founded

by Mother Cecile CR in 1884. It is a

public school on private property, with

the Good Shepherd Trust having

stewardship over the property.

• CAMI educational software was

initiated in South Africa in 1984, and is

now used in over 1000 South African

schools, as well as in several other

countries.

Umbuliso Oct-Nov 2015, page 4

(For English, see page 2)

uBishophu uEbenezer ubhala athi…

Ubungcwele abuyonto uzikhethela ngokuthanda

By Lihleli Vellem, Deputy Chairperson, St Francis Youth Guild

It was a joyous moment on 31 May at St. Francis Parish in

Mdantsane when the Youth of St Francis surprised their be-

loved Chaplain, mother, mentor and dear friend, Mama Lungi

Mpumlwana, who has been a vibrant and hands-on member of

the Youth Guild ever since the start of the year. Mrs

Mpumlwana was welcomed by the youth as their chaplain and

at the same time the youth celebrated her birthday with her as

well. It was a surprise that left her at a loss for words and full

of joy. The Chairperson of St Francis Youth Guild, Miss Yan-

diswa Vokwana, shared heartfelt and earnest words that ex-

pressed how happy the Youth was to have a mother figure of

her calibre in their midst. Mama Lungi Mpumlwana was pre-

sented with a DYG T-shirt and a king-sized cake which she

decided to share with the congregation of St. Francis.

St Francis Youth celebrate their Chaplain’s Birthday

Bazalwana noodade abathandekayo,

Wanga uYesu Krestu “ozizinto zonke,

waba kubo bonke” angalawula ngapha-

kathi kwenu. Ndisoloko ndinombulelo

kuThixo othe ngamandla kaMoya oy-

iNgcwele wanenza nanakho ukusebenza

njengomzimba kaKrestu.

Masizikhumbuze ukuba amalungu

ahlukeneyo emizimba yethu isebenzela

ukulungelwa komzimba wonke:

ingqondo ininceda ukuba nicinge, imi-

phunga ukuba niphefumle, amathambo

ne z ih lunu ukuba n i shukume ,

amathambo awomeleleyo okhakhayi ak-

husela ingqondo, neembambo zikhusela

intliziyo nemiphunga. Akukho lungu

lomzimba wethu linokusebenza lingadi-

bananga namanye amalungu; kukwan-

jalo ke nangathi sonke thina bamvu-

mayo uThixo ukuba unguBawo wethu.

Umthandazo awabafundisa wona aba-

fundi bakhe uYesu othi, “Bawo wethu

osezulwini…” (Mat. 6: 9-13; Luk. 11: 2-

4) unyanzelisa yaye ufaka umanyano

phakathi kwethu.

E l u bhap t i zwen i , s i n i k e z e l a

ngobuthina beziqu zethu, ngokobuh-

langa nangendlela yokuhlala kwethu,

siyinikezele kuKrestu. UPawulos

oNgcwele wayemile ngelithi indlela

enye nekuphela kwayo yokugcina

imimiselo kaKrestu kukuthi gqolo

sihlaziya ingqondo yethu (Roma 12:2).

Walithundeza ibandla laseKoloseukuba

lizimilisele iingqondo zalo kwizinto

zaphezulu (Kol. 3:2).

I C a w e i l a n d e l a u h l a z i y o

lwengqondo, ikhuthaza nomanyano

noThixo kwakunye nomnye nomnye

ngokufunda iziBhalo nangamaqela om-

thandazo. Ndihlaba ikhwelo kuwo

amakhaya ukuba aqhube imithandazo

yasemakhaya imihla yonke (kubhetele

ngokuhlwa xa kungekho kuxakeka

nabungxamo) kwakunye nokuba aye

kwimiThendeleko e yeVeki okanye yo-

suku ukuba kunokwenzeka.

Ezo ntshukumo zenza ukuba sibe

nomanyano noThixo ongcwele yaye

osimemayo ukuba nathi sibe ngcwele.

Xa uThixo wayexelela uMosisi noAron

ukuba baxelele amaSirayeli ukuba abe

ngcwele, wayengabaceli kuphela:

“Ngokuba ndinguYehova uThixo wenu,

ze nizingcwalise nibe ngcwele, ngokua

ndiyingcwele (Lev. 11:44). Ngoko ke ub-

ungcwele babalandeli bakaKrestu as-

into yenziwa ngokuthanda nokuzik-

hethela, yinto esisinyanzelo. Yindlela

kaThixo yokwenza izinto eyenza ukuba

sibe nakho ukuhlalisana ngem-

visiswano. UPetros oNgcwele uhlaba

ikhwelo kubafundi bencwadi yakhe yo-

kuqa l a ukuba babe ngcwe le ;

“Ngokwabantwana bolulamo... ngok-

walowo ungcwele wanibuzayo, nibe

ngcwele nani ngokwenu kuyo yonke

ihambo. Ngenxa yokuba kubhaliwe

kwathiwa yibani ngcwele ngokuba

ndingcwele mna. (1 Pet.1: 14-16).

Iminqweno yokungazi kwethu idala

imilo neemfazwe ngaphakathi kwethu

nakuluntu lwethu. Ukuze ubudlelana

phakathi kwethu bulunge kufuneka si-

fune ukuba ngcwele.

Inkonzo inika amathuba okuba

ababhaptiziweyo babe ngcwele. Ngom-

thandazo wentlambululo, abo babhap-

tiziweyo ukuhlaziywa kobomi babo

(AAPB ip.106 no13). Thabathelani

ingqalelo amazwi kaThixo ekwenziweni

kumila kumbi kukaYesu; “Lo nguNyana

wam oyintanda endikholisiweyo nguye;

mveni yena (Luk. 9:35).

Ngaba siyasiphulaphula ngok-

wenene isishwankathelo semiThetho

eliShumi ngeCawe nganye? UYesu

wathi, “Uya kuyithanda iNkosi uThixo

wakho ngentliziyo yakho yonke, ngom-

phefumlo wakho wonke nangengqondo

yakho yonke... uya kumthanda ummel-

wana wakho njengoko uzithanda

ngako.” (APB, p.105 no. 10). Injongo ya-

loo mazwi kukuphucula ubudlelane be-

thu noThixo nomnye nomnye. Imve-

laphi yokungaqondi kukungazi kwethu

l o m t h e t h o m t s h a k a Y e s u :

“Thandanani...” (Yoh.13:34).

Uthando lwethu kuThixo nokuthan-

dana kwethu lusenza sivuthe ngok-

wemililo olwavuthisa unongendi wom-

Carmelite owayengumntu wezenkolo

nomguqull wentlalo, uTeresa waseAvila

(1515-1582): Siqala sizibone njen-

gamehlo kaThixo, izandla zakhe, iin-

dlebe zakhe neenyawo zakhe. Sanga

umfanekiso kaThixo ongaphakathi

kuthi nakwabo sibakhonzayo.

Njengosapho lwedayosisi nanga nin-

gaphetshezelelwa bubungcwalisa bu-

kaThixo, ubudlelane benu omnye nom-

nye banga bungamiliselwa kuthando

lukaKrestu ithi nemisebenzi yenu elun-

twini iguqulwe nguMoya oyiNgcwele;

ngoku nangonaphakade. Amen.

Umbuliso Oct-Nov 2015, page 5

FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF SPIRITUALITY

Holiness is doing God’s will By M Fourie and A G Clarke

There is every reason to be holy. God is holy. Above all, he is love. To be holy is to be filled with God, which is to be

filled with love. God’s will for us is that we should love passionately and compassionately. It’s as simple as that!

Jesus considered love so important that he summed up all religious teaching and the requirements of faith in two

commands: love God with all your reason, all your emotions, all your actions and all your abilities; and love each

other as much as you can love yourself. What a challenge! What an opportunity!

We all know that being in love and being loved in return is the best

condition any human can be in. That is what God wills for us, not just

for now but forever and ever. What heaven! Imagine the feeling you

have when you love someone passionately and discover that they feel

the same way about you—you feel beautiful, strong, wonderful, and

above all, deliriously happy. Then imagine what it would be like to

feel that for an eternity! Being with God, experiencing his love and

being able to return it because he has made us holy, must be absolute

heaven!

You cannot truly love what you do not know. That is why the person

who strives after holiness spends so much time in study and prayer—

building a relationship with God. Having God at the centre of your life,

and willing what he wills, makes all the difference.

From "Spiritual Fitness in 10 Minutes a Day" By M Fourie and AG

Clarke (published by Xlibris), p. 24.

Family Weekend draws the crowds

The annual diocesan Family Week-

end took place in East London over

the weekend of 20-23 August. Pro-

ceedings began with a Clergy

School on 20-21 August, and a Gala

Dinner was held in St Saviour’s

Church Hall on the evening of Fri-

day 21st. Revival sessions were

held on the Thursday and Saturday

evenings. The Saturday was de-

voted to youth activities, sports and

a choir competition.

Gathered for worship, clergy and laity

from around the Diocese finished the

Family Weekend with a splendid

Eucharist service in a marquee at Jan

Smuts Grounds on Sunday 23 August.

Umbuliso Oct-Nov 2015, page 6

By Ntombizine Madyibi

St Saviour’s Church East London staged

a farewell function on behalf of its for-

mer Rector Canon Cynthia Webbstock

on 26 July, 2015. She was promoted to

the position of researcher and Personal

Assistant to the Bishop of Grahams-

town in March, 2014.

The event was preceded by a High

Mass where she presided at the Eucha-

rist and the Rector, the Revd Godfrey

Walton, delivered a powerful message

about love. The event was graced by the

presence of the Revd Matshaya from the

Central Archdeaconry.

The event was marked by ululations

as well as tributes to the characteristics

of Mama C, as she is affectionately

known. The Guilds showered her with

blessings and presents, including money

to the tune of close to R20,000.

Testimonies to her leadership; firm

approach, attention to detail and com-

mitment to Christian values were ech-

oed by all the participants, as well as

her down-to-earth socio-emotional intel-

ligence. They portrayed her as a strong

woman with a forgiving heart, who is

also quick to say “sorry”, a person who

inculcated a practical approach to divin-

ity within the context of the Holy Com-

munion. Her talent to train and her

developmental approach saw an in-

crease of ministers during her tenure.

In her reply Canon Cynthia admit-

ted that she had not been happy to

leave St Saviour’s because it had be-

come her home, and the congregation

her family: Nonetheless, she expressed

her happiness in her new calling, and

said she is embracing the new chal-

lenges with excitement. She ended by

thanking the congregation for their pa-

tience, and their understanding dis-

played at the time when she was grap-

pling with understanding cultural intri-

cacies. She assured everyone that she

left the parish a better person. She was

overwhelmed by the love showered on

her, and declared that the people of St

Saviour’s will always be close to her

heart.

In the vote of thanks, the leadership

mentioned their happiness that the

event finally took place after a year of

planning; and that it was God’s plan-

ning that the occasion occurred in

“Mandela Month”, a month of ubuntu,

when each person should turn the

search light on their self and check

whether they are doing their duty to

their neighbour.

Godfrey Walton in his closing re-

marks, thanked the congregation of St

Saviour’s. He said that good things do

happen in the Church, which is evi-

dence that the Holy Spirit is at work in

parishioners, but commented on chal-

lenges affecting the Church given its

location: crime, poverty, inequality and

deprivation. He indicated that Cynthia

left a positive legacy which she should

be proud of, and hoped that Cynthia’s

farewell would be used as a springboard

to greater and better things in St Sav-

iour’s.

The function ended with words of

thanks by the Churchwardens, Ndome-

lele Madyibi and Zola Dabula, who said

they were truly humbled by the expres-

sion of love from the parishioners. Spe-

cial appreciation went to Dr Giyose who

chaired the after service session.

Wrapped in love, Canon Cynthia

Webbstock enjoys the warmth of gifts

from her former parishioners at St

Saviour’s East London.

Thanks to Canon Cynthia Webbstock from St Saviour’s parish

By Cyril Nonjobe

The St Andrew’s Anglican

church choir in Ginsberg

held a Retreat which was

facilitated by their Rector,

Prof P Mtuze, on 20 and 21

February 2015 at Kwalini

village. It started with the

Holy Sacrament on Friday

and members were requested

to be silent and allow God

time to be in their lives.

Prof Mtuze commended

the choristers, together with

the Youth, for the idea of

holding a retreat at the be-

ginning of the year. He

stated that a Retreat is a

time of quiet, away from the

ordinary demands of life; a

time and space to gain better

perspective on the deeper

meaning of life, a time and

place to get to know God bet-

ter in an intimate and per-

sonal relationship, and lastly

a time of reconciliation and

peace with God. He empha-

sized that a member of the

Choir belongs to God and to

the Church. He read a scrip-

ture from Matthew 12:33-37),

and explained the responsi-

bilities of the church choir,

saying that without the choir

there is no church.

There were three groups

or commissions that dis-

cussed the following topics:

Positive things Members listed reasons why

people joined the choir: Love

of music, friendships formed

within the choir, support,

responsibility, good working

relations, neatness, confi-

dence, a sense of belonging

and that the choir is accom-

modating.

Negative Challenges Late-coming to choir, poor

attendance at practices,

members not respecting each

other, lack of back-line (male

voices), moving up and down

during services, disturbance

by cell-phones, incorrect uni-

form, lack of respect amongst

members.

Rectifying the Problems Choir members and youth

were requested and encour-

aged to invite God into what-

ever they are doing, respect

each other's view, have faith,

love and pray together. Mem-

bers should not take each

other for granted, should

understand that they all

come from different back-

grounds, treat each other

equally, go past the problems

in the choir. Communication

is the best key to success.

All these views and ideas

were coming from the choir

members. In his closing re-

marks Prof Mtuze stated

that we must remember and

understand that all that we

are doing, we are doing for

the praise and worship of the

Lord. All those who attended

the Retreat agreed that it

was fruitful, an eye opener to

everyone and an unforgetta-

ble experience.

(Apologies to the author and

the church choir for the late

appearance of this article,

which was “lost” in the Um-

buliso files! Ed.)

Ginsberg Church Choir Retreat

Umbuliso Oct-Nov 2015, page 7

By L Makie

Parishioners of St Katherine

Berlin dedicated their “67

Minutes” on Mandela Day to

Mrs No tumata Cabe

(umaMpondomise), a 78-year

old lady residing on a farm

near Berlin. She lives in the

dining room of the old farm

house. About four years ago,

she was sharing a wooden

house with her nephew who

unfortunately passed away

when the house was de-

stroyed by a fire.

She was excited to see

people arriving from the

church led by the Rector, B T

M Mfenyana. She was devas-

tated as she explained how

she lost her belongings in the

fire four years ago. Her Bible

and hymnbook were also de-

stroyed by the fire and only

her steel cabinet remained

intact. The worst part about

where she stays is that there

are no proper roads, and the

area gets flooded easily due

to the river which is 500m

directly below her home.

For a person who lives

alone, she is very ill. She is

diabetic with high blood pres-

sure and had suffered a mild

stroke. Her home is located

quite far from the nearest

Health Care Centre. In addi-

tion, she does not have any

children of her own, but for-

tunately there is a “Good

Samaritan” who

takes care of her

and stays in the

same yard.

For the Mandela

Day 67 Minutes, the

project was to assist

umaMpondomise in

her difficult time by

donating useful

goods for her well-

being. The congre-

gation got together

and collected gro-

ceries, vegetables,

toiletries, clothing and bed-

ding etc. The Rector blessed

the goods and gave words of

hope and encouragement. He

also asked her how far she

was on the RDP house appli-

cation list. She replied that

she was uncertain, but she

continues to pray that she

could own a proper house of

her own before she passes on.

She was finally given a

bible and a Presbyterian

hymnbook by Mrs N Jajula,

to replace the ones damaged

in the fire. When this gift

was delivered, with money,

the following Sunday, umaM-

pondomise confirmed that

she had decided to dedicate

herself to St Katherine’s from

that day on, since her church

is far from Berlin.

Vuyiswa Mize, wife of the Priest-in-

Charge of St Philip’s Grahams-

town, died suddenly on 30 July

2015.

Vuyiswa was born in Grahams-

town in 1943, and began her school-

ing at the primary school at St

Philip’s, where one of her class-

mates was Mluleki Mize, her future

husband. The death of her father

just as she finished primary school

resulted in her moving to Port

Elizabeth, where she attended

Cowan Secondary School.

She and Mluleki met again as

adults, and were married in 1968.

In 1999 Mluleki was ordained into

the self-supporting priesthood, and

has served since then at St

Augustine’s and St Philip’s Gra-

hamstown.

Vuyiswa had joined the St

Philip’s Mothers’ Union as early as

1974. At the MU Conference last

year, she was awarded a certificate

for 40 years of dedicated service to

the Mothers’ Union.

To the end of her life Vuyiswa

served her Lord and the church.

She was troubled with high blood

pressure and arthritis in later

years, but always seemed cheerful

and loving. On the day she died,

she had gone to lead prayers before

a funeral, when she collapsed, and

was rushed to hospital, but too late.

Prayers are asked for her hus-

band, two daughters and three

sons, and the grandchildren.

OBITUARY

Vuyiswa Mize, priest’s wife and dedicated MU member

Berlin parishioners take 67 Minutes to help senior citizen

Flood danger: The house where umaMpondomise stays is

prone to flooding when there is heavy rain, and she is praying

for a house of her own.

Helping hands deliver a gift from St

Katherine’s Church.

Practical help: Some of the

goods given included

groceries, vegetables,

clothes, toiletries and

bedding.

Forty years of dedicated service:

Vuyiswa Mize joined the Mothers’ Union

of St Philip Grahamstown in 1974.

Umbuliso uyakubulisa ….

From the Bishop’s diary

October

9-10 Fri-Sat Diocesan Council, St Alban EL

11 Sun Kingswood College Confirmation

12 Mon Confirmations, DSG, St Andrew’s

College

18 Sun St John & St Chad Zwelitsha

60th anniversary celebrations

21 Wed Clergy School

24 Sat Confirmation, Holy Trinity KWT

25 Sun Confirmation, EL Central

28 Wed Property & Investment sub-

committees

November

3 Tue Chapter, Scenery Park

8 Sun Confirmation, KWT West

15 Sun Confirmation, EL South

21 Sat Fellowship of Vocation

Workshop

22 Sun Confirmation, EL East, St

Philip Gompo

28 Sat Post Ordination Training

29 Sun St Martin Gonubie

December

12 Sat Ordination

24 Thurs Christmas Eve

Umbuliso is your

diocesan newspaper!

Contributions welcome

Please send news to:

P O Box 181, Grahamstown 6140

Tel: 046 622 7803; Fax 086 681 4677

E-mail:

umbuliso@grahamstowndiocese.org.za

Umbuliso is published by the Diocese

of Grahamstown, edited by Maggy

Clarke, and printed by Dupli-Print,

Grahamstown.

Dead-line for next issue:

20 November 2015 Read Umbuliso online at

www.grahamstowndiocese.org.za

For Prayer

In the light of the huge numbers of

refugees from Africa and the Mid-

dle East making the perilous jour-

ney to Europe in recent weeks, the

Archbishop of Cape Town, Thabo

Makgoba, has called for prayer for

refugees and migrants: “...Holy

Spirit of God, help us to pray and

act for refugees and migrants eve-

rywhere… Guide us, Lord, in open-

ing ourselves to their plight in prac-

tical ways, without fear or preju-

dice...”

Eleven bishops of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa visited Marikana Mine in

the North-West Province on September 11, 2015. At the scene of the killing by police

of striking miners in 2012, they were briefed by officials of Lonmin, the company

which owns the mine. The bishops are seen here after the briefing, gathered at the

foot of Wonderkop, the hill on which miners were killed in the first fusillade of police

bullets. A number of bishops prayed for the miners, their families and the police, and

Archbishop Thabo Makgoba ended the prayers with a blessing.

Anglican Media Office, Bishopscourt.

ACSA Bishops pray at site of Marikana mine killings

The Outreach Committee of St

Francis Mdantsane’s Anglican

Women’s Fellowship (AWF) made

a gift of clothing to the Good Sa-

maritan Children’s Home on Mon-

day 14 September, in obedience to

God’s word. As Thabisa Fikizolo of

the AWF said, “Sisikelelekile

isandla esiphayo!” (Blessed is the

hand that gives).

St Francis AWF gives clothes to

the needy

A generous gift: Mrs Lujiza (right) is

seen handing over the goods to a

representative of the Home’s

management.

Clergy moves

Umbuliso welcomes

back to Grahams-

town Dr Isaias

Chachine, who was

formerly on the staff

of the College of the

Transfiguration. He is now the Sen-

ior Programme Officer of the Re-

gional Learning Programme, at the

Public Service Accountability Moni-

tor (PSAM), in the School of Jour-

nalism and Media Studies at Rho-

des University.

Aida Esprey, who has been assist-

ing at All Saints East London, has

now retired. We pray for her

health.

Permanent Deacon Isaac Hard-

nick has moved from St Mark’s

Cambridge to All Saints East Lon-

don, Mary Botchway has moved

from St Mark’s to be Assistant

Priest at Good Shepherd, East Lon-

don, and Deacon Feliciano Jan-

neker has moved from St Mark’s to

St John’s, East London.

Death of Margaret Thorpe

Margaret, widow of Cyprian Thorpe

an Honorary Canon of Grahams-

town Cathedral, died peacefully at

her home in England on 16 Septem-

ber. Cyprian Thorpe served in a

number of Eastern Cape Parishes

including St Matthew’s Mission.